A BLOODY ROTTEN TREK

I would like to explain a trek in which I participated in 2008

which I would class as one of the worst experiences in my life.

I do this for a number of reasons.

Since that time, I have felt bad about the number of trekkers who

wasted their money on a rotten trek. As well, I wish to explain the

problems that can occur when a trek goes bad. Inexperienced trek

leaders may need to be aware of the pitfalls.

It was a Dicker trek that gave leaky tents and unsatisfactory food.

On that trek, I was the military history advisor and Jimmy was the

team leader.

This meant that Jimmy was so quiet that he would come to me to

ask that a message be shouted to the troops. It would have been

easy for me to take over but I refrained from the temptation after

years working in the PNGDF.

The trekkers were from the normal spread of Australian society. I

enjoy the company of such people and always make the point that

after living in PNG, it is a pleasant duty to spend a week trekking

with a group of laughing, farting and taking the mickey Australians

if you know what I mean.

I have a repertoire of PNG stories and am never short of a tale to
tell. This is useful to jolly trekkers along if they are feeling the pinch.
Or if conversation drops around the camp fire at night. I have stories
to tell the porters too in Tok Pisin.

Problems started on day 2 on the trek up the Iorabaiwa ridge when

I slipped and did in the ligament in my left knee. It was burning agony

like a red hot poker stuffed up beside the knee cap.

I immediately dropped from towards the front to the very back of the

trek and walked with Jimmy the trek leader and sweeper. That day
my briefings dropped as I could not keep up with the group.

On the trek down to Naoro, I moved on my backside helped along

by my porter down through the stand of massive Klinkii pines.

Arriving at Naoro camp site, I was accosted by a trekker demanding

to know what he had paid for. He had not heard a single briefing all day.

He said that he had paid good money for a white man to be leader and

demanded to know why I was not up the front leading.

He was a builder from Walgett trekking with brother and son-in-law.

He started to show himself as the trek bully who was determined to

show he was a better man than the person talking about the war.

He started a campaign of intimidation, claiming that the white man was

trek leader. He was not prepared to accept a black fella. The claim was

made that Dicker had advertised that the leader was a white man. There
has never been confirmation of this.

He started to spoil the trek by constant hatred pouring forth. He did not

accept anything starting from the leaking tents which he claimed was the

fault of the white man to the food that was not of an acceptable standard

and the fault of the white man.

Military history briefings were not up to standard in spite of the fact that

he knew nothing. He claimed the porters were quietly telling the correct

story. Pull the other one.

On Brigade Hill, briefing was wrong as someone had said that the battle

was somewhere else. It was building up in the mind of the yobbo trekker

from Walgett that he wanted his money back.

He complained to the other trekkers so much that he spoiled the trek for

them. Any one who opposed him may have found themselves in the middle

of violence. That is how he solved problems on the building sites of Walgett.

Demand continued that the white man was the trek leader who should have

hobbled his way on his damaged ligament to be leader of the trek.

The fact is the head porter is the leader. The PNG leader is at the back

of the trek as sweeper and the military history white man was anywhere

needed.

He started to interfere in the military history briefings and made loud claims

that the white man never washed. On most treks there is an etiquette that

the leaders eat and wash last. He was looking for every possible way to

spoil the trek.

On second last day, he took over the trek which was not difficult as we

all just kept walking. The harassment did not stop at the Kokoda airport
as we were required to wait for an aircraft for an hour. The quiet trekkers
just sat.

Another aircraft arrived and the yobbo demanded our group takes over

the aircraft despite the fact that the earlier trekkers were ready to board.

All this was the sign that the white man was not doing his job.

Meanwhile, final upshot was that Dicker of Sydney deducted K1000 from

my pay for the trouble caused. Jimmy was suspended for 6 months for what

ever he did not do. Quiet Jimmy did not even have the English skill to handle

a loud Australian yobbo.

The problem lay with a trouble-making Australian from Walgett who spoiled

the trek. Had he walked quietly with the group, it would have been a pleasant

trek. But we were stuck with him for 9 days.

I have completed 14 treks and have found most to be friendly experiences in

trekking with good Australian people.